Breath Of Midnight
by Aelin-uial
Summary: Long after the War of the Ring, Men fall prey to a new deciver, and go to war against the Elves. Against all odds, an Elf and his friends fight the coming darkness. Evil has made it's stand and it seems all may be lost; but the end is not yet written. R
1. Prologue

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Breath Of Midnight

( I of course do not own Middle Earth, just in case there was any question. Please  
read and review. This is my first Fan Fic.)

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Prologue

It has been two ages since the eldest left these shores to the dominion of Men. Our time had past, and we had now diminished into the west. Many of us, however, were unable to tear ourselves away from these shores, choosing instead to live as we always have. While we went about our timeless lives the world of men grew, and flourished, and there was much joy. The Elves loved Men and rejoiced with them in their songs. Always present, but always distant. We respected the old alliances and remembered our friends of old, but Men have short lives and shorter memories. In our efforts to diminish we were forgotten. A new deceiver had joined the council of Men, and had sewed new fears and doubts into their hearts. The same eyes that had once looked upon us with trust were now filled with suspicion. They became envious of our immortality, and they felt threatened by our remaining presence in Middle Earth. They suspected our ambitions were to overthrow Men and rule Middle Earth alone. Suspicion turned into fear, and fear into hatred. Thus the world of Men declared war on the world of Elves.

Middle Earth was torn in two.

Since the beginning of the fourth age those Elves who choose to stay in Middle Earth have been unorganized and without unity. Led by this new deceiver the race of Men made short work and slaughter of our people. We did not foresee the coming of the first attack, and were caught unprepared, and unaware. After the first wave those of us who were left grouped together to take a stand. Fighting against those who should have been our brothers we fought to the bitter end, and many on both sides were lost. Despite the odds, and despite the horrors we fought on, and just when a glimmer of hope began to shine, just when our fortunes might have turned, we were betrayed by our own flesh. The deceiver had found a foothold, and it would devour us from the inside and out.

The battle is over now, and we have lost.

Dragged off the field of war and imprisoned. To be questioned as to the location of others and killed.

The last hope of the Elves.

But we are not yet all gone. I will not let hope die. With all that is in me I will find peace in this world. Many deceivers have come and gone, but none triumph in the end. The end is not yet written, and perhaps I yet have a part to play. Until then I will fight on.

To be continued in Chapter One of Breath of Midnight.


	2. Dreams and Nightmares

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Breath of Midnight  
Please read and let me know what you think.****

Dreams and Nightmares

I see the sky  
I feel the earth  
I taste the air  
I can breath.

I lie on blankets of grass while the stars watch over me. The moonlight washes away the years leaving me young, and strong, and free.

In my dreams, I was free. I could wander the wide world again, and breathe the fresh air of the woods. In my dreams, the world was as it should be, but when I was awake; not all was so well.

I had spent another long night on the cold dungeon floor. Every night five of us huddled with our heads near the wall to keep the rats away, and every morning we awoke to find that we had failed. This morning a particularly ugly one scurried across my face, and I was jerked out of another pleasant dream. I tried to go back to sleep and return to my interrupted dreams, but the dankness of the cell and the chill in the air prevented me from achieving my goal. The elf that had been sleeping next to me rolled onto his side and began to jokingly shake me.

"Feaestel, Feaestel! Are you asleep, or are you dead?"

"I'm dead"

Ask a foolish question get a foolish answer; this was going to be my new philosophy if Callo did not leave me alone today. I was in another foul mood and I hated it.

Callo stopped shaking me and slapped my back just a little two hard.

"Hmmm dead? Lucky you!"

How was Callo always so happy?

I grunted at him, "You're disgusting. Do you know that?" I then sat myself up against the mossy stone wall.

"Well you don't exactly glimmer like the morning dew yourself."

I smiled at him. We used to play this game often during better times.

"Your right, I radiate more than I glimmer."

"Always have to be the prince of wit don't you?"

I crossed my arms and tried to look as regal as possible.

"I do have my reputation to uphold."

My dark mood was beginning to lift.

Callo always had that effect. He seemed to always be at peace with everything. His deep, almost black eyes never betrayed fear, or doubt. We had all followed him, and we all still trusted him. After all, he was our leader.

I closed my eyes and thought back to just a few months ago. This was not how it was supposed to end.

Maybe this was the dream. Maybe I was back at home in my bed.

Oh, fair Rivendell!

Maybe today those pigs would leave us alone.

"Do you think they'll forget we're here, and go torment someone else today?" I asked. Callo did not respond.

The whole prison had gone still and the air was thick with tension.

I slowly inched closer to the crude iron bars that separated the cells in an attempt to see what was happening. Things had been quiet for several hours now, and I had begun to let myself hope they were done with us. I whispered a quick prayer,

"Please, no more questions. Don't let it be more questions."

I saw the elf in the cell across from me kneeling on the floor. He was holding his sides and wailing in agony, as if his heart were being torn apart.

I turned to see what he was so upset about, and on the other end of the dungeon, I saw two guards dragging someone. A maiden? It was the lady Alfirin!

"Mirimon's Daughter" Callo said to himself as small tear formed in his eye.

"Nooooo, please nooo!" Mirimon's voice became more desperate as the two guards forced her to her knees in front of her father's cell.

"Please, she hasn't done anything!" He pleaded.

One of the guards looked up. He had a hungry look about him, and his unshaved face was curled up into a wicked grin.

The other guard laughed, proudly showing off his lack of teeth, and grabbed hold of the girl's long gold hair.

The hungry looking guard oozed into Alfirin's ear,

"Pretty, oh so very lovely." Then he turned to Mirimon.

"Stop your yelping! We've come here to make a reckoning. Your little escape attempt yesterday cost my brother his life. So in return, were going to take something from you."

The toothless guard smiled even wider, and drool slid from his lips as he spoke.

"You need to lean how expensive it can be to escape."

The toothless guard began pulling the maiden's hair back, stretching and exposing her soft neck. With his other hand he drew and angry looking dagger from it's cold sheath.

The lady Alfirin never cried or faltered. She held the guard's gaze as he slowly drew a thin lie of blood along the width of her neck.

I could not watch this! It had to be stopped! But what could I do?

Stall!

Distract!

I crawled right up to the bars and shouted.

"Nadorhuanrim!"

I had just started something, and I had no idea how I was going to finish it. It was never a particularly good idea to draw attention to ones self while in prison; it always ended badly. However, to a degree, my distraction seemed to be accomplishing its intended goal.

The guards let go of the girl, and turned towards me.

I shouted at them again,

"Lle n'vanima ar' lle atara lanneina!"

This time I definitely had their attention. I thought I heard Callo tell me to silence myself,

But it was already too late.

I shouted again, this time in words I knew they would understand.

"In case it was not clear the first time… I said… you two are a pair of cowardly dogs. You're also ugly, and your mothers dress you funny."

On this last point I stood.

The hungry looking guard came so close to me I could smell the rank on his breath.

I just kept staring into his eyes.

"What do you think are you doing you filthy elf?"

(Good question.)

I felt my blood begin to boil and my usually contained rage spilt over.

"Cowards! She has noting to do with the death of your foolish brother! He pulled his sword out at the wrong time and fell on it. You're just as slow minded as your brother, and you're just too weak to pick on someone who can fight back."

The toothless guard grinned. "Are you volunteering elf?"

"You leave her alone, and I'll pay you what Mirimon owes you."

Hungry barked at Toothy "Take the she-elf back to her cell, I'm going to make a new sort of reckoning"

He then moved his hand to his side, reaching for a key.

"You've made yourself a deal."

As he opened the cell door, I knew I had made a deal with evil itself. Callo tried to stand between him and me but he was too weak, and Hungry flung him up against the wall. Callo slid down to the ground.

Hungry hit me with his right fist on the right side my face. I hit the ground hard and it took me a second to remember where I was. I then felt myself being dragged outside the cell. I tried to get my bearings; I tried to stand back up; but before I could… Wham!… I was hit again. I knew I could not fight back; it would only make things worse for me, and for everyone else. All I could do was hope they would tire of this new sport. After the first ten or so hits, I began to go numb. My head swam and my vision blurred. I thought I heard more guards coming. I thought I heard them laughing and cheering. I smelled burning coal, and I heard the sizzling sound of iron being heated.

"Let's take this poker and gouge out his eye!"

"An eye for an eye! My brother would have been proud!"

I felt myself being forced off the floor and on to my knees.

One of the guards stretched his fingers over my face; he then clawed them into the tops of my eye sockets, and pulled my head back. I couldn't see through the blood, but I felt the heat of the poker nearing my face.

Then everything stopped. The heat, the blows, the noise; everything stopped.

I thought to myself that I must be dead! Even though I knew, I hurt far too much to be so lucky.

Then I heard his voice.

"You foolish drunks! What do you think you are doing?"

It was the Slasher. We did not know his real name, so we called him Slasher because of what he loved to put on our backs with his whip.

"You fools put that elf back in that cell! We need them alive! Dead elves cannot talk, Can they? Why do you think we were ordered not to kill them!

Hungry apologized to his master.

"Yes Sir. Please forgive us Sir."

Toothy exclaimed,

"We weren't going to kill him, just take his eye out for a souvenir!"

"Look at him, he's half dead already! Slasher shouted.

"Oh never mind!" Slasher groaned.

"It doesn't matter any more."

He then reached into his cloak. Frustrated with the whole affair he pulled out an official looking envelope stamped with a blood red seal. The seal featured a claw with three menacing talons. He broke the seal and began to read to himself. When he had finished he looked up.

"Just as I had suspected, it was really only a matter of time."

He carefully placed the letter back into his robes.

"It has been declared by official decree that unless they provide us with the location and identity of their friends and allies by dawn tomorrow, all Elves in the custody of the Red army of Gondor are to be executed. Now Get out of my site!"

I felt myself thrown back onto the dirt floor of my cell, and I heard them all leave.

Callo came over to me and wiped the blood away from my face.

He looked as bad as I felt.

"Feaestel! You crazy kid, don't you ever pull a stunt like that again! Do you hear me? That's an order!"

"You can't call me a kid anymore; I'm over 500 years old"

"And I'm older, so if I say you're a kid, you're a kid."

I looked up at my friend, and for the first time I saw fear in his eyes.

"I don't think you'll have to worry about it after tomorrow."

Slasher had been trying to get information out of us for three months. Lashings after lashings; he knew just how far he could push us, but none of us had told him anything. What would we tell him? As far as we all knew, we were the only ones left. One last army; one last stand to stop the murderers who had killed our families. We did not know anything, and soon it would not matter anymore.

I prayed, as I did every night, that the Valar would protect and watch over us.

I let my then heavy eyelids close, and I felt the sweet release of unconsciousness sweep over me.

I began to dream.

To be continued…


	3. Wake Up

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Breath of Midnight  
Please read and let me know what you think!

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Wake up

Wake up  
Breathe  
I feel my heart still beating  
The blood still rushing  
But I am as cold as a corpse.

I had spent so few years wandering this earth, and now I was to come to journeys end. The cell doors opened, and any feelings of hope closed. No one spoke a word as they led us out into the darkness of early morning. It seemed so long since I had gazed up at the stars. My eyes took what was feared to be their last embrace of heavenly light as they lined us up along an open grave; a hungry mouth waiting to devour us. The bow men drew their bows and took aim while the same questions were again asked, and the same responses again given.

We remained silent.

The sun began to slowly crest over the horizon.

Time slowed as the bow men's arms released and relaxed; sending their arrows toward their marks. The elves on my right and on my left fell back with a sudden force; I waited. My arrow found me and I felt my flesh tear and burn with an unusual warmth. When the shock had left me my body began to grow cold and limp. When at the last; I was no longer able to stand; I fell with my friends. As I lay there on my back; I believed I could actually feel the stars fading away. I closed my eyes and slipped into nothingness.

I woke up with an intense jolt of pain shooting from my shoulder.

I still had breath.  
I felt my heart still beating.  
I felt the blood still rushing.  
I was alive.

It was evening now, and despite the darkness I turned my head to get a better look at the arrow embedded in my shoulder. (It was no doubt the worst marksmanship I had ever seen. Though I suppose I shouldn't complain too much.) I looked all around me for any sign of movement, but saw only stillness. I listened for noise, but could hear only silence. The world it seemed had become a still and silent tomb.

I tried to move, but a great weight held me down. I was trapped, and panic began to build in my mind. I struggled to free myself, but someone had fallen on top of me and my legs were pinned my attempts to move were halted when I felt the earth vibrate ever so slightly underneath me; something was coming. I soon became hypnotized by the rhythm of steady marching above me. The guards were still out there watching; checking for any movement.

I held my breath and froze.

I heard a new noise, and saw an elf even younger than I begin to stir; unaware of the circling vultures above waiting to move in for a kill. He lifted his hand to pull himself up, and was laid back down again when another arrow found his heart. I fought the urge to go to him. I fought to hold back my rage and my tears. I fought to remain still.

The rest of the night and the following day I lay among the dead. Wishing I could join them, But unable to stop fighting.

The following night all was silent, and the guards appeared to no longer man their posts. I pushed and writhed with all my strength, until slowly I was able to crawl out. As I stood at the edge, I looked town at the tragedy and injustice below me. Part of me wanted to stay with my friends. Another part of me knew I needed to quickly move into the cover of Fangorn.

There are many times in life when we can choice to let tragedy overwhelm us, and beat us into submission; but we can also choose to fight back, and continue to live even when it seems unbearable.

I whispered a prayer for my friends and turned away.

"Cormamin niuve tenna' ta elea lle au'."

My heart shall weep until it sees thee again.

I ran for freedom; into the trees as they called my name.

It was a lifetime before I crossed the open field to the edge of the forest, but when I arrived it quickly swallowed me up and embraced me; promising to keep me safe.

I knew the first thing I needed to do was put as much distance between myself and the prison as possible, but before I could even think of moving I needed to tend to my shoulder. All I had to work with was the tunic, trousers and leather boots I had been wearing the day I was captured. I carefully removed the arrow, and tore a section of my sleeve to wrap the wound. I took in a deep breathe, and began to travel deeper into Fangorn.

Once I was clear of the sounds and smells of the dungeon, I became weary and thirsty.

I drank what dew was left on the leaves of the trees, and ate some of the wild fruit the woods offered to me. At last I was able to rest; I closed my eyes and began to dream of home.

O sweet Rivendell even in thy winter thou art a memory of hope, a beacon of light unto thy soul.

The trees began to stir and I was roused from my dream.

"Strangers are approaching" The trees whispered.

I moved to the highest branch I could; as I peered through the tree line I saw twelve guards with five dogs. All of them pushing through the maze of trees the same way I had come. The possibility of being followed had not entered my mind; I never would have thought they would notice that morning one less elf than there should have been. I began to wish that Callo were there with me again. He would have seen this coming, and would never have been so careless. I could still hear his voice in my head rebuking me; as he often had to.

"Feaestel; your good, but you're a young hot headed fool. You may be able to beat any foe with your blade, but you still have much to learn in the ways of common sense."

They guards had found my sent and were hot on my trail. I needed to lose them, and lose them fast. I made my way to the river Onodlo and plunged in. I swam to the other shore and again moved back into the safety of the woods. The men and their dogs would not be able to follow my scent now that it had been washed away by the water, and they would certainly have a hard time making it across even if they could. I heard the dogs barking and the men yelling as they came closer.

(For their sake, I hoped their goal wasn't to sneak up on anything.)

I climbed a tree and watched as they came into view on the other side of the river.

The man leading the hunt was tall and appeared to be very young. His eyes looked at the ground with determination and patience. He examined the dirt and put his ear to the earth. It seemed that I wasn't just running from some band of directionally challenged soldiers; I was up against a real tracker.

This again changed everything.

The tracker looked across the river in my direction; I remained hidden from his view; but he pointed towards my hiding place and said something to the men. The men began to walk downstream in order to find an easier crossing; leaving the tracker alone and staring right through me. After what seemed like hours he turned away and went to join his men.

I emerged from my hiding place and began to move up stream. I then readied myself to cross the river again. This time I paid far better attention to what clues I may have been leaving behind.

Elves don't leave much as far as tracks go, we have always been near impossible to find once in the woods, especially woods as thick as Fangorn, but this man was accomplishing what I had believed to be impossible. He was tracking an elf.

I knew when the sun set I would be able to put a great deal of ground in-between us. He would need to sleep; where as I would be able to keep moving throughout the night if I needed to. There was, of course, always the hope that one of the trees would crush him during the night; although it seemed very unlikely. Fangorn had quieted itself during the last two ages and was no longer viewed as ominous. It was seen more as just a good place to hide; but it was not my plan to hide forever. I needed to turn the tables. My next task would be to acquire some weapons. I was going to fight back.

_To be continued…_


	4. Visions

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Breath of Midnight  
Please read and let me know what you think!

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Visions

The age of visions is past.  
We can no longer see where we are going  
We can see only where we have already been  
And even that is not altogether certain.

Events that had occurred only days ago, already seemed lifetimes away. I had been home in Rivendell when we had received the word; the armies of men were marching; their eyes fixed and set against fair Lorien.

I bid my sister farewell and rode out to defend that golden wood. We could not, and we would not, stand to see Lorien fall. It was our last stronghold and it must not fail.

With an army growing closer everyday, we wasted no time in our preparations. We would not wait in fear as our enemy came to us; we would come to them. Thus, we moved our newly formed army south into Fangorn forest. We had a plan that could end this war with one last fight. All along the edge of the forest, we hid weapons and supplies. Within the tops of every tree, we positioned arrows and the strongest bows; just waiting for their masters to make them sing. We were going to surprise our enemy while they marched through the Gap of Rohan. Half of our numbers would put out a wave of attack, and then fall back into the woods. The enemy would come with us into the forest where the others remained hidden. We wanted our enemy to follow us and fight us on our own terms. Once beyond the tree line archers would thin the enemy's lines, while the infantry would retrieve needed extra weapons and circle around them. Once the enemy was surrounded, both halves would come together and end it once and for all. Unfortunately, we never had a chance to put our plans in to action.

We had been betrayed.

The enemy had known we were coming and had not been surprised. They were not just marching from the South West as we had been told. They also came up from the South East, and they instead surrounded us. They encircled us, and cut us into two, preventing us from ever reaching our friends in the forest. Very few of us made it back to the tree line, and those of us who survived were captured.

I stood in the dim light for a moment lost in my memories.

I did not know if any of our hidden weapons were still keeping their secrets somewhere yet unfound; but the need for something to defend myself with was worth the risk of venturing so near the edge of the forest. I began to examine the ground below me and saw what only a pair of elf eyes probably would have seen; a small patch of ever so slightly discolored grass. I pulled up the patch to find a hidden treasure of beautiful Elven blades. I reached into the ground and carefully selected a slender dagger, and a long silvery sword. As I continued my search, I found and collected an unused bow, and many un-shot arrows still hidden in the trees. I came across a few unexpected things as well; leather wristbands, a good belt, a satchel filed with leaf wrapped lembas bread, and a cloak. I clasped the bands on my wrists over the sleeves of my tunic, and fastened the belt around my waste. I tied my black hair back out of my face, and tied the cloak around my neck. Last but not least, I finally sheathed my weapons. My shoulder began to ache as I placed the bow and the quiver of arrows on my back; but at least now, I would be able to fight if I needed to. That tracker had better hope he did not cross my path today.

As I stared to walk toward the safety of the deep wood, a foreign noise again broke the peace in my mind.

Impossible!

However, this did not sound like my tracker and his dogs; it sounded like a lady's scream.

I probably should have continued on my way unnoticed; but my curiosity got the better of me. I moved toward the sound, and climbed up behind a tree with a hidden view of the commotion. Below me, I saw three large men, all in some unrecognizable uniform. They did not appear to be soldiers; they appeared to be some kind of hired mercenary. Their weapons were old and ill fashioned, and their own appearances matched them. The largest of the three had a young woman thrown over his shoulders. She was thrashing every which way while yelling, swearing, and beating the larger man with her fists. For some reason I could not take my eyes off her; it was though I had fallen into a strange trance. She had fire red hair and a fiery spirit to match; her voice was strong and so were her fists. I was actually beginning to believe she would bring the large man down, when the spell was suddenly broken. The big man threw her of his shoulders onto the ground. She fell hard and her head hit a sharp rock; she had been knocked senseless. The large man taunted,

"That should calm you down!"

My blood began to boil. The familiar image of the lady Alfirin being dragged across the filthy dungeon floor began playing itself in my mind. Why must the strong always prey upon those who are weaker? All I knew at that moment was that it was going to stop.

I pulled the hood of my cloak over my head and I placed my right hand on the hilt of my sword. Then, reason unknown, I jumped out of the tree and charged right for the biggest of the three. My soul was on fire as my sword forced its way though the chest of the big man. I withdrew the blade and used it to block my left side. With a powerful clash, it came into contact with the blade of another. The second mercenary. As the third approached on my right, I quickly used my free hand to draw my dagger from my boot, and sharply blocked his blow as well. Using all the strength I could muster, I forced my then crossed hands to uncross; my one hand leading my sword through to the man on my right; bringing him down. My dagger hand was now open, and I gracefully cut into the one on my left, dropping him to his knees. My sword; then in one sweeping motion moved to finish him. It was all over in seven moves.

Once the adrenaline rush had eased, I realized how hot headed I had been. Had I been listening to common sense I would have went on my way. This poor girl had noting to do with me, and she would probably only get me into more trouble. I have never been very good at thinking things through. My heart has always had lead over my head, often to a fault.

I cleaned my blades on the grass and began to walk towards the woman's side. She had regained consciousness and had seen the last of the fight; her green eyes grew wide as I approached her.

"Who are you and what are your intentions stranger?"

I pulled my hood further down over my face to hide my appearances. If she saw that I was of elf kind it would probably only add to her fears.

(She was a strong woman and I did not want to risk being attacked by her too.)

"Just a wanderer who shows up when he is most needed I hope."

"Indeed, just when he is most needed."

She slowly looked me over before she continued. She forced herself to smile.

"I am in your debt; but I cannot properly thank you until I know your name stranger."

She removed me from her gaze, and focused on straitening her skirts as she tried to stand up. I went over to her and offered my hand to help her up. She accepted, and I pulled her to her feet.

"Feaestel. My name is Feaestel."

I really could not see any harm in giving her my name, and I was hoping she would return the favor and give me hers.

"My name is Meril. It's very pleasant to meet you Feaestel."

She held on to my hand and gave it a good shake. I just looked at her. Meril was a nice name; an elvish name; the name of a flower. I smiled without thinking.

"What so funny about that, why are you smirking?"

"A rose! Meril; your name means rose where I come from."

She smiled as she dusted herself off.

"That's wonderful! Roses are my favorite flower. I think I'll insist that everyone call me Rose from now on."

She began to search the ground for something she must have lost in the struggle. She stopped and let out a sigh of relief. She then bent down; pulling her missing shoe out of a nearby bush.

"Why would you want to change your name like that?" I asked.

"You said my name means rose; so I'm not really changing it am I? Besides, I'm starting a new life and I'll need a new name."

I was beginning to believe her knock on the head had left her daft. I turned to head back, and readied myself to leave. I was at a loss; what was I supposed to do next? The girl was safe and my part was done. I should leave and get back to my business with that tracker fellow. Before I could do anything though, she suddenly spoke again. This time more seriously and with a twinge of dread in her voice. I turned back toward her and saw that she had changed; she was no longer moving about, or looking me over with forced confidence. She was just still; her eyes had fear in them.

"I don't really know who you are or where you are going, but please take me with you!

A tear had fought its way through her guise and was slipping down her check. She whipped it away with an indifferent determination.

"There will be more mercenaries after me before long, and I have no place to go. Please do not leave me here at the mercy of time."

I was moved. Her strong facade was beginning to crack and I felt for her. Any plans I may have had would just have to wait, I could not abandon her after all this.

"I won't leave you. I promise."

To be continued…


	5. Storms

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Breath of Midnight  
Please read and let me know what you think.

****

Storms

The past can leave us marred.  
The future can bring us fear.  
Time may again hurt all that it heals.  
But friendship lasts us through the storm.

I could feel it coming. I could feel the wind change its course, and I could sense the air thickening; I knew a storm was brewing. First, the clouds rolled in darkening the sky, soon to be followed by the first drops of rain. The drops fell soft at first, then harder as they began to come down in sheets. The forest groaned, and seemed to come alive again in the storm. The roots of the trees lifted themselves out of the ground to drink their fill, while the branches danced in the wind. Lightning pounded the earth, filling the world with short bursts of light, revealing grinning faces etched in the menacing tree trunks. These colorless flashes lit our path as we made our way through the night looking for some shelter from the ragging world. Our tensions were quickly growing along with the building storm; we feared that our labors would be fruitless. Our minds were finally put at ease when we came upon a small dark cave buried in the side of a hill. It seemed to be covered in a thick mangled growth; the entrance was barley discernable through the bramble.

"Wait out here." I said.

"Let me check and make sure it is safe."

"What do you mean safe? It must be safer than the storm."

"Let's just say I'm not in the mood to stumble across a hungry troll, or an ill tempered orc."

"Fair enough."

I slowly eased myself into the darkness of the cave. I hated caves. I would have been much happier weathering the storm outside; but that was not an option now that I had Rose to consider. She looked wet, exhausted, and in need of a place to sleep.

At least the cave was dry and warm.

Once I was satisfied with the cave I motioned for Rose to come in, and I tried my best to lighten the mood. She had barley said a word all day.

With a deep bow and a sweeping arm I proclaimed;

"Welcome to your palace my lady!"

She in turn curtsied low, and graciously answered me.

"Thank you my lord, you are too kind!"

We exchanged smiles. It felt very nice to laugh with someone again. Our mirth eased back into an awkward silence and I searched my mind for something to say; but I was at a loss. Anything would be better than this deafening silence! My train of thought was then immediately interrupted by the echoing resonance of her rumbling stomach. We both instantly resumed our laughing, and we continued laughing until the pain in our sides forced us to cry at the same time.

"Would the lady be so kind as to join me for some supper?"

"My lord, I would count it as the highest honor."

We sat ourselves down on the rocky floor of the cave. I opened my satchel and pulled out some of the Lembas bread I had been saving.

"All I have is some of this way bread, but you sound hungry enough to eat anything."

She blushed a little and laughed.

"Is it that obvious?"

I tore myself a small piece and gave another to her. She gave the bread a questioning look and turned to me for an explanation.

"It doesn't look like much, but it really does go a long way." I promised.

She quickly ate hers and seemed to be quite satisfied.

"That was unlike anything I have ever eaten. What exactly was it?"

"It's kind of a local travel dish where I come from."

"And where would that be?"

I had not intended to open the conversation up for personal questions. I stood and pretended to investigate the rear of the cave.

"Oh, North from here, somewhere over the mountains. I come from a small village you've probably never heard of.

I made an effort to move the topic away from myself.

"How about you? Where are you from?"

She turned her head away.

"Oh, South from here. From a small kingdom you've probably never heard of."

A silence soon fell between us again.

(We were both terrible liars and we both knew it.)

I looked over at her sitting across from me; her head rested in her palms and her fingers were knotted in her hair. She looked very tired.

"You had better get some rest Rose."

"I don't think I can sleep every noise I hear rattles my nerves. How do we know we will be safe here? This forest seems very strange to me."

"If it makes you feel better I will keep watch all night long. I promise nothing will come within a mile of this cave."

She looked up at me and smiled. This smile was such, that it would have inspired even dwarves to leave their halls in order to bask in it's glory. I was taken aback

"Thank you Feaestel. I hope I'm not being to bold, but I've only just met you, and already you have been kinder to me than any man I have ever met."

I gave a fake cough and mumbled. "Don't mention it."

I put my back against the cave wall and sat down. It surprised me when Rose came right beside me and placed her head on my right shoulder. She did not say a word, but I could feel that she was in some sort of pain. I put my arm around her and did my best to comfort her. She was suffering inside, and I did not know how to make her feel better. The two of us just sat there for a awhile; being very quite and very still; keeping a steady rhythm with our breathing.

"Do our pasts ever leave us, or do they just go on haunting us like ghosts until they are buried along with us in the grave?

I could offer her no answer; the same question plagued my mind as well.

She lifted her head and looked very deep, directly into my eyes.

(It was an eerie sort of feeling to say the least.)

"What are you running from my friend? How many ghosts do you have haunting your dreams and thoughts late at night Feaestel?"

I couldn't speak. Her questions surprised me, and only served to remind me of my pain. I saw my ghosts every time I closed my eyes. The wall I had put up between myself and my thoughts the day I left my friends behind in the grave, burst open and broke the levy that held back my sorrow. I was unable to stop the tear from falling. Rose gingerly lifted her hand to wipe it away. Her smooth hand brushed my check and continued toward my forehead; pushing my hood away from my face. This fluid movement continued until my hood had been removed, and her fingers found themselves tracing the leaf like shape of my elvish ear.

"Now I understand. I just knew there was something special about you."

She was not filled with hatred or fear, just a strange compassion. Never had someone accepted me as I was so simply.

I just smiled at her. Then very quietly almost to myself, I began to sing a song I had learned when I was very young.

Where Legends Fly, and hopes are born.  
A time hearts remember, and memories morn.  
When small things were great, the weak were made strong.  
Evil never triumphed, good always righted wrong.  
Such days are gone; our music has lost its theme.  
But if you are still, you can always dream.  
Midnight still brings tidings of new and better days.  
The darkness to the sun must still give way.  
So, breath in deep this our hour of hope,  
And through this darkness the soul will cope.  
Courage and possibility this moment can bring,  
And though all may seem lost, we still shall stand and sing  
As we take in one sweet breath of midnight.

"Quel kaima; sleep well. Dream of happier places yet unseen."

I watched her as her eyelids gently fluttered and she slowly drifted off to sleep. I tried to imagine what she was dreaming about. Was I in her dreams? She was certainly in my thoughts. She had nuzzled herself under my arm, and her hand lay now across my chest. My heart was beating so fast I was afraid it would wake her. I tried to stop breathing, but that only made matters worse. She was so warm next to me; her skin felt so soft. This Rose truly was a flower.

All night long I kept watch over her as I had promised. All night I listened and watched for danger. I could not sense much through the storm, but everything seemed still and safe.

As the sun prepared to rise, I gently woke her.

She opened her eyes slowly at first, until she snapped awake. She quickly sat up and tried to smooth her unruly hair with a sheepish smile.

"Sorry about that. I didn't realize how close I had umm… got in the cold. You've probably lost all feeling on the right side of your body."

(The truth was I had, but I really didn't mind.)

As we stepped outside the cave we took in the new day. The sky had cleared, and the air had been made sweet with the rain. I emptied my lungs and took in a deep cleansing breath; but all was not as it should be. I smelled something other than the dew in the air that morning; I smelled blood.

The wind had again changed, this time carrying a stench with it as it blew up from the South. The source was near, and seemed still fresh. Thoughts began to run through my head. Perhaps another battle had been fought? Could it be possible that more of my kind had escaped and were now in need of aid? I needed to know. Spilt blood is never to be taken lightly or ignored; lest it soon mingle with your own.

I turned to Rose.

"Stay here, and please do not move from this place. The wind brings news of death and I need to know why. I don't want you to be in the way or get yourself hurt. I do not know exactly what I'm going find at the end of my search, but I do want to know that you are safe, and that you will not come to any harm on my account."

She placed her hands on her hips and gave me a stubborn look.

"I will not be _staying_ anywhere! I'm not a useless piece of gear you can just abandon in order to lighten your load. I can hold my own when occasion calls. Now, lead the way. I'm not afraid of a little blood."

I was not going to waste my time arguing with her.

(Even I know there are just some battles you can never hope to win.)

It was not long before we came to the end. Here the stench was unbelievably strong, and I could see in Rose's eyes that she too could smell it now too. We entered the clearing and I saw something I had not been expecting. Before me, protruding from the ground like some heathen monument stood seventeen bloody wooden pikes. Twelve held the body's of uniformed soldiers; the other five held the remains of their faithful dogs. These were those who had only days before been my hunters. The storm had saturated the ground with a mixture of blood and wet dirt, and despite my best efforts, every step I took caused the mixture to cling to me like sand. I carefully approached one of the pikes brandishing the corpse of a soldier. It looked as though he had been run straight through; the pike finally and violently emerging from his chest under his chin. His mouth was open in a silent scream, and his eyes looked blankly toward the east; catching the sun's reflection as it rose. Surely he had suffered for many hours before death took him. I searched the faces of the others looking for the young tracker, but he was not to be found there that day.

I looked behind me and saw Rose; she was standing near another pike, eye level with the solder.

"This one's not dead! Feaestel come here! He is still breathing! Help, we need to get him down!"

I ran over as fast as I could, but as I looked at the solder my heart was filled with grief. We could not hope to save him, his injures were too severe. Ironically, it was the pike itself keeping him alive. It was holding him together preventing him from bleeding to death. He may have been my enemy, but no soldier deserves to die like that. The only merciful thing to do now would be to end his suffering. I explained this to Rose but she refused to understand. Despite her protests I placed my hands around his head, and sharply twisted until he felt no more pain.

"Can we leave now, please?" She whispered.

"I'm sorry Rose."

"May we please leave?"

"Yes. Let's go. I think we have both seen enough death today."

We left the clearing and continued to walk; not going any direction in particular; just away.

My only wish now was to wash away the blood, and any memories that still clung to me from that horrid place. I heard the gentle calling of running water and called back to Rose to get her attention; my wish might soon be granted. I looked back and saw that she was no longer following me. She had set herself upon a fallen log and was staring blankly; deep in her own thoughts. She ignored me as I approached, and seemed to have no interest in the prospect of cleaning away the blood that stained her hands and dress. I patiently waited for her to emerge from her stupor, but as the sun reached its highest point in the sky, I reached my highest level of patience. I picked her up off the log and proceeded to carry her. Less than ten minuets later, we came across an inviting small pond. I approached the waters edge, and (being careful to follow through with my arms and upper body) swung her into the air. She landed with a splash and an angry gasp right in the middle of the pond. I laughed and dove in right after her. She pushed me under the water, and gave me a good slap when I came back up. She yelled;

"What was that for?"

"You're far too depressing, you know that right?"

"Well… you're a crazy elf! Gone mad from eating too much Lembas bread!"

I smiled.

"As long as we both know where the other stands."

We sloshed our way back to the bank, took of our shoes, and soaked our feet while we tried to dry off.

We sat there together with our own thoughts while we watched the sun dance in the leaves and play on the water. A gentle water fall fell filling the silence with a soothing melody. After much thinking on her part; Rose finally spoke out loud what had been festering in her mind all afternoon.

"Those soldiers we saw back there were from Gondor."

Her face was a mixture of determination and sorrow.

"The day has finally come when foreign solders may tread upon Rohan, and work whatever evils their lord designs. I pray Rohan is not party to the horrors Gondor's army's has unleashed upon the world. I can only ask how long has this violation been allowed?"

I knew all to well how long the army had been in Rohan.

"For at least three months. They have a war council, just off the South east tip of this very forest."

Rose looked surprised.

"How do you know this?"

"I was there and I escaped. Those solders, plus one tracker yet unaccounted for, were sent in here to find me."

I could see that there was more to these men, and more to Rose than I had first believed.

"What exactly do you know about those men Rose?"

"Did you notice that those solders had no weapons, and did you see how the seals on their uniforms had been torn away? Those solders clearly had been dishonored and then executed as traitors."

Everything she said made sense; but why and by whom?

I was about to ask another question when a flock of small birds erupted out of their perches in he forest and clamored noisily up into the sky. Something was approaching. I motioned for Rose to hide and silently drew my sword. I slowly moved foreword; carefully scrutinizing every movement of every plant and leaf; listening for any secrets the forest wished to tell.

I shouted into the trees.

"I know you are out there! End this game and face me like a warrior, unless of course I am mistaken, and you are a coward?"

With that having been said; a young man slowly emerged. He was wearing a tattered uniform, and holding his sword so low it was drawing a thin line in the dirt. This young man was no doubt my missing tracker. He attempted to lift his sword with both hands but failed; he fell to his knees and with a moan he cried,

"Please…elf…have mercy, help me."

He then fell face forward to the ground; revealing the two arrows protruding from his back and upper shoulder.

I moved toward him and kneeled down next to where he had fallen. I removed the sword from his hand, and checked for a heart beat. He was still alive. Rose came out of hiding and kneeled down with me on the ground.

"Is this the man who was tracking you? His uniform is like the others."

"Yes this is him"

The wounds looked deep and the arrows were tangled in his shredded clothes.

"Now can you help me remove his tunic? I think we might have to cut it off."

She gave me a questioning look, but she moved to assist me.

When we managed to cut away his tunic, we got a better look at the damage the arrows had done. This young man was very lucky. The arrows had missed anything vital, but if left untreated the wounds could still prove deadly. Rose held him steady as I pulled the arrows from his back. I didn't have any proper stitches, so I used the veins from a fibrous plant to stitch up the wounds. He was stable; but unfortunately he was still going to need better treatment if he was going to survive.

"What now Feaestel?"

Indeed; what now? Leaving him here to die would be the easiest thing to do. I had done my best, and more than anyone else would have done in my place. His death would be of no consequence to me, as I'm sure the deaths of my friends were of no consequence to him.

I saw him again in my mind; wounded, uniform torn, and face racked with pain; helpless. He had cried out to me for help. How could I just walk away? For some reason I had a profound respect for this man. I was sure I would never again see his equal in the art of tracking. I knew it was not my place to pass judgment on this man, just as it was not his place to pass judgment on me. He; like Rose; had been placed in my path, and I needed to decide weather or not I was going to accept what I had been given.

I decided then that it was time to go. Fangorn was no longer a place to hide; it was a place to bleed. A death trap that knew no favorites.

"I need to get him out of this forest. I'll travel to a town I once knew North of here, and see if I can get him some help."

She looked doubtful. I couldn't blame her.

(It was my plan, and I even thought it was foolish; but I've never let stupidity stand in my way.)

"I really could use your help, if you're willing to travel with a crazy elf a little longer?"

She gave me a fake pout.

"Well, alright; but only because I can't think of anything better to do."

In order to lighten my load, Rose took my bow and quiver, my cape, and my satchel. I then lifted the tracker up, and placed him over my shoulder. He let out a moan, but still remained blissfully unaware of his approaching journey. While walking however; I was very un-blissfully aware of his weight on my back.

(I quickly prayed to the Valar in hopes that they would bless me with a horse.)

We set off on our newly shared road; ready and willing to take on anything that would be put in our path.

To be continued…


	6. Friends and Foes

I wanted to remind everyone that I do not own middle earth. (If this is a shock to you, I beg you to leave now while you still have your dignity.) In this chapter I have used thoughts, exerts, characters and names from the Silmarillion. Just a short note; I'm using the name Morgoth for Melkor simply because the story is "told" by an Elf and they would not use the name Melkor.

****

Breath of Midnight  
Please read and let me know what you think.

Friends and Foes

One word can hold such power  
One song so much joy  
One thought can inspire many  
and one deception  
can be made to destroy them all

Since the beginning; since the first chorus was sung into the void, and Iluvatar spoke the universe into existence; ever since that moment there have been those who wish to corrupt and pervert all that had been so lovingly created. It began with Morgoth himself. His inability to submit to the creator, and his desire to forge his own path, took him away from the will of Iluvatar. It rendered him unable to create anything of beauty. He could only take that which already existed, and twist it to suit his own dark purpose. He could not be the creator, so instead he mocked him. He still however longed for the light of Iluvatar, but he could never reach it through his own devices. So he burned with a thirst he could never satisfy. His hatred grew all the stronger; fueling his darkness and pulling him further away from the Flame Imperishable.

What was begun then continues now.

Why is it that Morgoth and those like him hate the children of Iluvatar so much? It is because we can do the one thing that they can not; we create. We were made after the heart of Iluvatar. He has blessed us with the ability to produce art, music and song. Because of this we are capable of an unimaginable joy. We have been given the gift of the light of Iluvatar; the one thing they can no longer possess.

The characters may be different, but the plot is the same. By understanding what has been, we can understand what is now.

In the days of Numenor, Sauron filled Men's hearts with jealousy and contempt for their brothers the Elves. They envied immortality and failed to see the gift that had been given to them. Thus Numenor fell. It has been said history repeats itself. Sauron was defeated long ago, and has now been forgotten by all but those whose memories are still deep. The dignity of the line of Aragorn has now been forgotten. No longer does a true heir of Elendil sit on the throne. Instead there now sits a warmongering steward, who laid claim to the crown through a monstrous civil war. The future of Middle-Earth has been placed in the care of Men, and they will choose the future of us all

Two days of travel; two days of trudging along step by step; the weight of the wounded on my shoulders. Two days closer to the village. Such a journey might have been tiring, but the company of Rose had proved to refresh my every step. She helped pass the time by talking continually, and fooling with my bow. She surprisingly became quite good and jumped at every opportunity to practice her new skill.

"Please don't shoot the arrows anywhere we won't be able to find them. Those are the only ones I have at the moment. Should a worst case scenario occur, and we meet someone who doesn't like us very much, I'd hate to ask them to excuse me while I look for something to shoot at them."

She smiled.

"Why don't we take a rest? You must be tired by now. You can sit down for awhile, put an apple on your head, and I can shoot it off?

(She had become a good shot, but not good enough for me to let her aim in my general direction.)

"Let s not and say we did."

Those two days passed with little more excitement than that. As night prepared to fall, we came to the North eastern edge of Fangorn. We were now less than half a day away from our destination. I laid my cargo down and rested myself on a fallen tree. The young man stirred ever so slightly, but still remained unconscious. His wounds were not healing well despite the stitches, and because of blood loss his fate was still uncertain. Rose kneeled down by the tracker. She attempted to make him more comfortable and brushed his dark brown hair out of his face.

"He's actually rather handsome once you get a good look at him."

It was then that something caught her eye. She lifted up a hand made necklace he was wearing around his neck.

"My Grandfather gave me a necklace just like this. This necklace is that of a farmer. Look, it has a colored bead for each planting season and a string of leather for each harvest. This man can't be a trained solder…he's just some farmer from somewhere within the Mark."

I examined the necklace myself.

"He must have stolen it from a villager, but it still makes little sense."

"No it makes perfect sense. Feaestel, you're a soldier are you not? When heading into battle what do you need to have in order to win."

"More troops and more weapons than your enemy."

"Now imagine that you are Gondor. You're preparing for a war in a strange land; you need a ready supply of disposable soldiers to do the nasty work, and fast. What do you do?"

I nodded my head and grinned. I could see where she was going.

"If I were Gondor, I'd take the eldest boys from the farms and villages. I'd warn them that if they did not fight, I would burn the family farm to the ground. I'm sure the family would be happy to supply us with food to keep their boys safe; after some convincing of course I would have taken down two birds with one stone as you say."

Rose nodded.

That poor kid. Why is it that the young are always forced to fight the battles of the old? I wondered if his family was missing him, and about how long he had been away from home. Rose sat beside me on the tree and handed me a piece of Lembas bread.

"I'm glad we are taking him home now, or at least taking him away from this war. You said this village would be a friendly place… right?

"Yes. At least it was once. Some time ago, the lord of this village decided he was being cheated of his well earned taxes. He set out his men to collect what he felt was due him, and then he ordered them to burn the village to the ground. A carpenter was sent out to seek aid; he got as far as the border of Lorien. I was there at the time, and was sent along with many others to help the village. We fought back the lord and his men, and helped save the peoples homes. They promised us we would always be welcome there as long as the village stood."

"How long ago was that?"

"Not long. Only sixty some odd yeas ago I imagine."

"That's not very encouraging."

Rose slid herself down onto the ground and rested her back against the tree. I lowered myself to the ground and followed her lead by reclining back.

She whispered sleepily;

"This is a beautiful night, is it not?"

I looked up at the sky and saw every star in heaven shining it's brightest. The night air was crisp, and the moon gave a soft silvery light to the world below.

"Do the Elves have names for the stars?"

My memory flooded, and washed me back to a time when I learned my lessons from atop my father's knee. It was there he taught me all about the first born and their love of the stars. He taught me each stars name, and about how I could always find my way home by following their guidance. I pointed each one of them out, and told her the names my father had taught me so long ago.

"… Those stars over there form the Swordsmen of the Sky…If you follow my hand over here you can see the Sickle of the Valar… Oh, and that big shiny orb is called the Moon."

I then told her of the first rising of the moon, and of my ancestors fight against the darkness.

"...Even as the Moon rose above the darkness in the west, Fingolfin let blow his silver trumpets and began his march into Middle-earth..."

She sat next to me looking at the stars and listening to my stories.

(Elves have a love for story telling, and I was proving this fact with vigor.)

"Why don't you tell me a story Rose? Tell me a tale about your people."

She looked down at the ground and over toward the young man. She gently closed her eyes and took in a deep breath.

"I only really know one… There is a story told of a mighty king of Rohan. His rule was wise and just, but sadly he had no male heir to take the thrown. He was not concerned however, but was very content in his only daughter. She was the apple of his eye. They both shared the same red hair and fiery spirit. The girl's mother was the daughter of a farmer and an Elf maiden. Every night the girl's mother would tell her daughter of the Elves, and their world. She even named her child in her mothers tongue. Things were blissful, and the kingdom rejoiced with him in his happiness. Evil had long ago crept its way into Gondor, but Rohan appeared immune. The king had no worries about the outside world. He contented himself with his people and his family. Such bliss was not to last. One night as the king sat under the stars reading to his daughter, an assassin came and relived him of his crown; along with is head. His daughter was left alone weeping, and holding tight to the book her father had held only seconds before. Because there was no heir, the king's cousin took control of the throne of Rohan. Yet despite all his newly gained power, he still lusted for more. Eight years later a dark woman entered Edoras, and held counsel with the new king. She promised him new lands in Gondor and gold if he aided them in their war against the Elves. She also recommended that In order to strengthen his hold on the throne; the king should marry his cousin's daughter, and dispel any questions as to his authority. The king made his dark allegiance. Rohan opened its borders and lent forces to aid in Gondor's war. Thus the darkness was allowed to enter.

On the night before her wedding the girl disappeared. Gondor sent out their best mercenaries to find her in hopes of securing their new allies power, and their own murderous agenda."

The picture was slowly coming into focus; the story finally was beginning to unfold.

"Let me see… I think I know the rest of this tale. The mercenaries caught up with the girl as she hid in the forest. When they attempted to leave with their prize, they were cut down by a hooded stranger…an elvish stranger?"

"Well I see you already know this story, so I won't bore you with the rest."

"What happened to the girl's mother?"

"She slipped into madness and disappeared. Some say she took her own life, others say she is alive and locked away to insure her silence."

"I'm deeply sorry Rose."

She rolled over onto her side, and turned her back to me.

"Good night Feaestel. I hope the people in that village will still honor their promise. If not, you will just have to keep your hood up, and your mouth shut while we try to get some help. Either way we shall both sleep in warm beds tomorrow… Oh, how I long to sleep in a bed again."

She fell asleep clinging to that thought, and no doubt dreaming of nice feather pillows. I myself was considering joining her, when my weary eyes made up my mind for me. It was then that I did the one thing I should not have done; I fell asleep.

My dreams were dark and foreboding. I saw visions of fire. Everything around me was burning and I was unable to move. I was forced to witness again the death of my Mother and Father. I saw their murderer's red hands join with other bloodied palms in a victory dance over the dead. I saw the tears in my sister's eyes as she carried me home to bed. It was then my dream shifted. I was no longer a child. I had returned to my present self, only now I was trapped in an all consuming darkness. I felt a shadow hovering over me with iron claws and teeth moving to devour me. I called out to the Valar for light, and then sharply awoke.

Now instead of a shadow over me I saw the young man. He had moved, and was now less than three inches away from my face holding a knife in his hand. I sat up and reached for my sword. The man put his finger to his lips, and then pointed behind me into the woods. It was then I heard them. Some thing was moving in an attempt to surround us. The man whispered to me;

"How many do you think are out there?"

I listened carefully.

"I hear exactly six."

I nudged Rose and put my hand over her mouth to keep her quite. I pointed behind us, and motioned for her to slowly lower herself. The three of us lay there; each grasping a weapon; our pulses quickening with the dreaded anticipation of attack.

Moving as one body, the six emerged into our camp site. Each one was indistinguishable from the next. They all wore dark green hooded capes that blended them into the forest. I would have believed them to be Elves, but they whispered to each other in the common tongue. As they approached our position, our tracker friend pulled himself up with great effort, and threw his knife boldly into the leg of one of the six. This caught them off guard, and they became unorganized. Some of them were moving to the aid of their comrade, while others moved towards us at an increased pace; weapons drawn and hoods removed. Rose sat up with my bow and prepaid to take aim. I jumped up and began my own charge. Swords crossed and clashed. I wounded two of them, but Rose never fired off a single shot. I was becoming angry. Why wasn't she shooting? I couldn't hold back six men alone. My sword slashed across the forearm of one man, and I swung back around in hopes of finishing him.

I heard Rose scream;

"Stop! Please stop! You'll kill him!"

I turned my head and saw her in the arms of one of the men. She was not struggling, but rather clung about his waist. I couldn't believe my eyes! She knew these men…she knew them! Had I again been betrayed? Those thoughts and that sight were the last things I saw before I was blindsided from my right side, and fell to the ground unconscious.

What can help us when we are fighting against ourselves? What if the darkness finally consumes? If this world is as it was in my dream, hope is the only thing left that can save us.

To be continued…


	7. The Door in the Floor

****

Breath of Midnight  
Please read and let me know what you think.

****

The Door in the Floor

Friends can be foes.  
Strangers can be brothers.  
Enemies may one day be allies.  
Judge carefully,  
The eyes are often blind.

I had a vision.  
  
I stood at the edge of a dark chiasm. The world around me was burning and my only escape lay hidden in the deep unknown. I fought to keep my footing on the edge, but a foul wind pushed me off my feet. I fell and fell, until at last I came to the end. As I lay lost in the darkness, I heard a still small voice call to me from the void.

Wake up!

My body tensed violently and I was jerked into a blinding light. At first all I could see was gray. Then slowly the darkness melted away and the world was no longer consumed in flame; the void was but a dismal memory. I was no longer dreaming but wide awake in a strange, small, windowless room. The only way in or out seemed to be a door like opening in the floor with a menacing iron ring handle. I sat up from the straw cot I had been laying in and tried to open the door. I grasped the cold iron and pulled up with all my strength, but it didn't move. The door must have been locked from the other side. I raised my hands in silently frustration and sat roughly back down on the cot with my head hung low. I did not escape from one prison only to end up in another. What wrong turn did I take to lead me here? I mumbled a few choice words in my own tongue and then a few more when I heard a voice from the other side of the room.

"I don't know what you just said Elf, but I certainly know how you feel."

I shoot a glance back and saw that tracker I had shouldered half way through Fangorn laying on his cot near the opposite side of the room; his hands casually resting behind his head.

"You look better than the last time I saw you." I said.

He replied, "Odd… you look a lot worse."

We looked each other over from head too toe. Neither of us knew yet if the other was actually a friend or a foe.

(Such things are never clear in times of war; friendships can too often be a thing of convenience.)

He had helped me during the ambush in the woods, and I had helped him when he was injured, but neither of us knew the true motives behind the others act of kindness.

After some time we both came to the conclusion that it didn't matter. We were both locked in this strange room, and we both needed to find a way out; together.

We thought and planed. We pulled and tugged on that ring until we thought we would go mad. We even used the leg off of one of the cots to try to gain leverage on the door; but nothing worked.

"All we can do is wait for that door to open itself." I said

It wasn't a pretty thought, but it as the best plan we had.

"What shall we do until then Elf? Trade war stories over tea I suppose?"

There wasn't much else we could do, someone would have to come up here eventually, and we would just have to wait it out.

"Save the tea for later, first I would like to know your name…I only know you as the tracker from the woods, and that is not a formal enough title for polite conversation. My name…not that you asked…Is Feaestel. I'm a friendly fellow, and I've been told that fair maidens find me to be rather dashing."

He sat down on the three legged cot and it tilted awkwardly. He frowned and brushed some lose straw from his back. He did not seem to be amused by my attempt at humor.

"My name is Aswin. I am a son of Rohan, if there be any left in these dark days."

He didn't seem too interested in passing the time with words; he seemed to prefer the silence and said no more for quite a time. I decided to keep to myself and to make no further attempts to lighten the mood. Thankfully he soon grew tired of the silence, and so did I. We again found ourselves forced into conversation. He left his broken cot with a kick and sat down on mine. He looked both cautious and curious as he worked up the nerve to ask me a question.

"You really must tell me…where did you learn to hide and move through the forest. You are very difficult to track. I've never in all my days seen anything like it. At times it was if you were nothing more than a leaf blowing amongst the trees."

"Let's just say I had lots of practice hiding from my older sister when I was young."

He laughed, and wiped away a small tear.

"Indeed, one needs to be quite skilled to hide from the wrath of an older sister. I stole my sister's doll once and feed it to our goat. She was so angry I hid myself up in a tree out of pure fear for two days."

We were both laughing now.

"Where is this mad devil, I would like to meet her…or avoid her at least. I Hope she's not still waiting for you to come down from your tree."

He removed me from his gaze and looked back to the ground. The laughter faded as he grew somber again.

"She is gone...they are all gone."

A somber pause hung over us both. It is easy to forget that both sides suffer wounds in war.

"Forgive me, I did not know… Please, can you tell me what happened to them?"

"We had a good farm and a good life on the southern border of Rohan close to the northern border of Gondor. My father died when I was young; but my Mother, my Sister, and I made do with what we had. I tracked wolves and other unwanted animals off our neighbors land for a small fee. With that money, and our crops, I managed to support my family. We led happy lives until the army came through. They told me we owed allegiance to Gondor for their protection over the years. They said that if I didn't serve a year with them in payment, they would burn our farm to he ground. So I did the only thing I could do to protect my family; I dawned a foreign uniform."

His last words drifted away as he thought.

"You don't want to hear anymore, and I don't want to say anymore. I hate myself for what I've done."

"No, please go on…what happened? Did you fight in the last battle?"

"I was in a small regiment and we didn't even make it to the field in time for the battle; only for the clean up. I was assigned to help track down any remnants of the…um… enemy who could still be hiding in the woods.

He checked my face for a reaction. When he felt it was safe to continue he did.

"I hated my job and my Captain. The Captain was a fool… but he finally got what he deserved in the end. One of the prisoners tried to escape, and the Captain was sent to go after him. They got in a fight, and that fool of a Captain fell on his own sword in the struggle. I unfortunately had to bring the escaping Elf back into custody. The Elf was nice enough. He didn't even give me a hard time. He was more concerned about his daughter I think. Some of the guards, including my Captains brother, were looking in her direction and yelling threats at the Elf…The whole thing made me sick. All I know is the next morning they took them all out and shot them in cold blood. Cowards."

"Yes, I remember that quite clearly. That Elf was a friend of mine. You know his daughter wasn't even supposed to be there. She had followed her father into battle despite his protests. She was very brave."

"But you! You survived somehow and escaped. My captain's brother wanted to see your dead body and spit on your grave. He was very upset when you could not be found among the dead one morning, and he went straight to the Commander. The Commander sent me with a team of dogs and men to track you down. I found some torn cloth and blood near the entrance of the forest that I believed to belong to you, and began my pursuit."

"I was wondering what you found to set you on my trail. I knew I had been sloppy, but I didn't know how sloppy until now."

Aswin smiled a little and gave me a mock pat on the back.

"After that point I couldn't find a single trace of you. I was moving solely on instinct and on more than a fair share of luck. Once we got as far as the river I knew it was over, there was no way we would find you. I sent my men down stream to look just in case, but I choose to stay behind. I could feel a strange presence in that place. I don't know what it was, but I felt at peace. The presence grew stronger and I was frozen where I stood. It was as if the trees were whispering to me. I was afraid; I left that place and returned with my men to camp. I explained to my superior that there was no hope of finding you now that you had crossed the river, but failure was unacceptable to him. He sent an entire regiment to my home. He ordered them to burn the farm to the ground and return with my Mother and Sister. He wanted to make an example of me for the other recruits. The message was simple; fail me and I will murder your family before your very eyes."

"I'm so sorry…that monster…"

"He then marched my Men, their dogs and myself into the woods. He told us that the only way we would ever leave that place would be if the wolves carried our bodies home to their cubs. He said that you had suddenly become of great interest to Gondor, and your capture was of the utmost importance. He called us traitors, and tore the seals from the men's uniforms. One by one he had me watch as they were skewered alive on pikes; even the dogs were shown no mercy."

The image of those pikes and the smell of the blood that morning came back into my mind.

"So that's what happened… Striper killed those men."

"Striper? Oh you must mean Osric. He's very dangerous, not someone you want to toy with."

I was drawn in by this man's story. It was so irreversibly tied to my own.

"What happened next? Surely this Osric didn't just let you go?"

"No…no he wouldn't. He tied my arms and legs to four posts in the ground. He then left me to listen to the cries of my comrades in the darkness. He is truly a monster. He left three guards over me with instructions to kill me if I wasn't dead by morning. They firmly stood watch… until the storm came. They soon became frightened of the woods; they swore they could see the trees moving, and hear them groaning. Two of them threatened to leave and return to camp. The third one drew his sword and ordered them to hold their posts. A fight soon ensued in the midst of the storm, and one of the guards was slain. His sword fell near me and I managed to lose one hand from its binds and reach for it; all the while the other two continued to fight."

He paused and then went on.

"I cut myself free and began to crawl away through the mud. The whole time I felt that strange presence I had felt in the woods. That same strange peace…I was not alone. I stood and made a run for the angry woods, but not quite fast enough. I was struck down by two arrows, one after the other, right into my back. I continued moving, dragging my body in pain; hoping I could not be followed in the storm. It did not seem as if I was pursued. I can only assume that they continued their fight, and killed each other before they could come after me. The rest you know already. Surely there was some hand guiding our paths to bring about our meeting."

"I would not doubt it…friend…I would not doubt it."

I head it first, but Aswin was not far behind me. We looked down towards the door.

The floorboards began to creak and groan. Voices were rising through the floor. The door began to moan, and the ring clanked against the moving wood. The door was opening. Someone was coming through.

This was our chance!

To be continued…


	8. Promises Fulfilled

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Breath of Midnight  
Please read and let me know what you think!

****

Promises Fulfilled

A battle can not be fought alone.  
A soldier is only a part of a whole.  
A war is fought on many fronts.  
When we struggle,  
We do not struggle alone.

It goes without saying that the best made plans are usually doomed to fail. Aswin and I had been waiting for the opportune moment to escape. The moment someone opened that door from the outside we were as good as gone and ready or not our time had come. The door was opening, and that someone was coming through. Aswin motioned for me to move to the other side of the room while he broke off another leg from the cot to use as a weapon. I decided to grab the leg already on the floor, and we prepared to take on anyone who dared show themselves. So far we were doing well, but that was not to last long. The door cracked and bright light flooded the dimly lit room. A hand came into view; soon to be followed by a lovely head of long red hair. Aswin lifted his broken piece of wood and moved to strike.

"Stop!!! Don't move!" I yelled while I ran into Aswin; knocking him to the floor.

He pushed me off and yelled back,

"What is wrong with you, have you gone mad?

The stranger coming up from the door was of course Rose.

(The red hair gave her away in an instant.)

While we were arguing; she climbed back down and tried to re-close the door behind her. I shouted back at Aswin,

"Don't let her close that door, grab her, but try not to hurt her!"

I took a dive and slid across the floor just in time to lodge the cot leg in the door; thus preventing it from closing. Rose fought with the handle anyways, and kept trying to pull it shut, but Aswin managed to get a good grip and pull it open the rest of the way. I reached down, grabbed Rose under her arm, and pulled her up through the floor. I covered her mouth with my hand to muffle her scream while Aswin lowered the door back down, but only enough to keep it open just a crack. Rose tried to kick and twist her way out of my grip but I held her down under my weight.

(Don't be too mad at me. She did manage to land a few smart hits.)

"Be still Rose, I don't want to hurt you. I'm going to let my hand off your mouth, but if you scream or struggle, I'm going to have to get rough."

She stopped her struggling and seemed to accept her situation; at least for the moment. I slowly let my hand off her mouth.

"Now you're going to be a good girl and tell me what's going on here. Where are we? Who were those men in the woods, and how do **you** know them?

"Feaestel…I'm so glad to see that you're alright…I was so worried after that horrible night. You took a nasty knock to the head my friend.

"Friend?! You betrayed me!"

"Feaestel, I swear to you that I have not betrayed you! I want to help you!"

"Lie to me no more!"

Suddenly without warning the door opened again, but this time it did not open slowly; it flung open with a great force. Aswin jumped down to hold it shut, but the door caught his chin on the way up. Aswin fell to the floor as the fourth party made his entrance.

It was the man Rose had clung to just the night before. His hand rested steadily upon a large sword that hung loosely at his side; ready to draw. His eyes fell down upon on Rose and myself.

"What is going on here?"

I let go of Rose and bolted towards the door. I had already had enough of this guy and I was going to bring him down. Leading with my shoulder blade; I rammed myself into the stranger and knocked him to the ground. The man recovered his bearings much quicker than I expected and soon he was back on his feet with his sword drawn. I tucked and rolled under the swing of his blade. Coming up behind him, I reached around his back and freed his spare dagger from its sheath. I plunged the dagger towards his open right side, but he shifted, and successfully dodged my thrust. He then turned and shortly followed with his own. I managed to cut into is left rib cage as I moved out of his path. The man spun around in pain and drew a small knife from his belt. He tossed it lightly into the air and let it rotate twice before catching it, and finally throwing it. The knife spun through the air until it burned its way into the side of my leg. The sheer force of the blow spun me and knocked me back to the floor. I felt the strangers hand grab my shoulder and roll me onto my back. He set his knee on my chest and his sword at my throat.

What he said to me then I shall never forget.

"Lle tela? Lle lava?" (Are you finished? Do you yield?)

He spoke to me in perfect Elvish! I was so taken aback I froze in place.

I yielded to him; "Amin lava" and dropped the knife.

"Good. I'm too tired and too old to fight with you anymore."

I looked over at Rose. She was kneeling on the ground holding her stomach. The man looked back at her and spoke with a voice of loving concern.

"Meril…are you alright? Did he you hurt?"

"No Eldritch, I'm fine. Not even a scratch."

"Good, I'm glad to hear that… Alright, now let's see if we can behave ourselves. You are not among enemies here master Elf, so you can calm yourself, and cease the knife work for a while."

He turned his attention to my leg. He gave me a look, I gave him a nod, and he pulled the knife out of my leg. I let slip a pain filled yell as the knife tore back through muscle and flesh. Aswin returned to his senses at the sound of my yell, and pulled Eldrich's back away from me. Aswin got hold of Eldrich's knife and pressed it against his throat.

"No Aswin Don't! Let him go for now."

He let go and gave me a cross look.

"Would you mind telling me what is going on here? What's happened to our plan? You are officially ruining all my fun."

With that he threw down the knife.

Rose left the room and returned with bandages and stitches. She offered to help me but I choose to bandage the wound myself.

She looked slightly offended when I refused her help, but her attentions soon returned to Eldritch.

"That you for your help Eldritch. You can go now; I'll take it from here."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes I'm sure; we're all good friends here."

Eldritch gave her a confused look, but gave in to her wishes and left…keeping the door open just in case.

"I'll be right down here if you need anything."

Aswin shouted back,

"I could use some breakfast while you're down there."

Rose scowled.

Aswin shrugged and sat down. As he slid down to the floor a slight streak of blood smeared the wall behind him. When he reached back to feel his shoulder his hand returned red and sticky.

Rose went over to him quickly.

"Lean forward and let me take a look. I think you pulled your stitches…Feaestel, throw what stitches and bandages you have left over here."

Aswin took the time to introduce himself while he leaned forward. Rose giggled slightly and gently removed his shirt.

I tossed over what I had left, and began asking Rose the same questions. I still needed some answers.

"Now let me see…where were we before we were so rudely interrupted Rose? Who is this Eldritch, and how long did you know about him and his men following us in the woods? I must say I certainly hope they are paying you well for all your hard work. I hear there is good pay in sneaking around and telling lies."

She began to re-stitch Aswin while she spoke.

"I'm going to pretend you didn't say those things just now, because I understand how you must feel, but as I said before I have not lied to you in anyway."

"You still haven't explained your friend."

"Eldritch is a gift of providence to be sure. He came down from the North around the time my Father was killed. He became my tutor, and he kept a close eye on my wicked Uncle. When I ran away, it was planned that he should meet me outside the city, but unfortunately he was temporarily detained. My Uncle held him for questioning about my sudden disappearance, but no fault could be found in him, and he was released. He hurried to our meeting place and became extremely worried when he discovered that I was not there as planed. His worry soon grew into distress when he came upon the bodies of the hired mercenaries at the edge of the forest. It was clear that I was not alone, but no trace as to what had happened to me could be found. So he called the other rangers together to search Fangorn. They happened on us completely by chance. Eldritch believes the trees were guiding them to us. The only reason they attacked was because they thought you and Aswin had kidnapped me and were holding me captive."

Her words silenced me. I knew she was telling the truth. I could see it in her eyes.

I felt about three inches high. If what she said was true I owed her an apology.

(I probably owed one to Eldritch too, but I still didn't know if I liked him or not.)

Before I could say anything however, Rose added in.

"Don't worry about it. It doesn't matter…the important thing is that you two recover from your wounds. Try to get some sleep."

Rose placed the last herb in the last bandage with a light smile. Aswin pulled his shirt back on and asked Rose one last question.

"Where exactly are we?"

"Oh! Of course, I almost forgot. You're in a small village in Rohan only a half a days ride from Fangorn's eastern border. This room is our temporary house of healing. It's just an old attic on top of a reused barn, but it's warm and dry and it serves its purpose well."

She helped Aswin back up to his feet and led him to one of the beds. She examined them with a confused look.

"What happened to these cots? They both only have three legs!"

Aswin and I both gave each other a mischievous look. I answered,

"Must have been really big bed bugs."

Aswin quickly added,

"If we break the other three legs off it should work out about even."

I was really beginning to like Aswin.

The next morning I awoke to the sweet smell of warm bread, and the sight of fresh clothes carefully folded at the feet of the two beds. The new tunic was that of a farmer, but it felt clean and soft against my skin as I slipped it on. While changing I re-examined my leg and saw that it was healing well. I guessed by tomorrow it would be as good as new.

(Elves heal quickly. This is a very good thing because lately I seem to be quickly wounded.)

Aswin was still asleep and I didn't want to wake him. He was still in bad shape and needed as much rest as he could get. I would make sure he saw his new clothes later.

I began to put on my boots, but before I could even lace them, an older woman pushed open the door and climbed up into the room precariously carrying a large tray.

"Good, I'm Glad to see that everything fits alright. You're taller than my boy, but much thinner. I must say I'm glad to see those old things being put to good use again. Here, I brought you both some breakfast if you're interested. I'll just set it here and you can help yourself when your ready.

She winked.

"I heard you had a bit of trouble last night."

I winked back.

"Oh just a little misunderstanding that's all."

There was something oddly familiar about this woman. Her face was strange to me, but her brown eyes seemed to shine young and bright against her age worn face. Those young eyes were very haunting; they seemed to hold a well of fire in their memory.

"May I ask who exactly you are?"

"Don't you remember me? Well I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. You look just the way I remember you, but I suppose I look very different…very different indeed."

How could she now me?

"My name is Mayda. We meet over sixty years ago. You pulled a small child out of a fire when your people came out from the woods to help save our village."

As she spoke it was if I could see the years melt away from her face. I could again see the small frightened child reaching out to me.

"My parents told me to stay in the mill while the men on horses trampled and burned through our town. I was all alone when the mill caught fire in the chaos, and you were the only one to answer my screams. You gathered me in your arms, wrapped me in your cloak, and pulled me out of blaze. You ran with me in your arms, and set me down behind the old oak tree. You sang a soothing song to me as you wiped the tears from my face. I made you promise to find my parents, and you kept that promise to me. You made sure everything would be alright. My family said you would always be welcome in this village as long as it stood. It stands still, and so does that promise."

I didn't know what to say. The promise still stands. Those words filled me with something I had not known for so long; it filed me with hope.

"We know they are hunting your kind. You should know that you are not alone in your fight; some of us have been with you from the beginning."

"We?"

"You have no doubt meet Eldritch and some of the other rangers? Eldritch is the man who gave you a hard time last night I imagine. He is old and stubborn, but don't let that young face fool you. He is of the line of Elendil. He may not yet be a king, but the rangers follow him still."

"Elendil?! How can that be? King Elessar's line has long been lost; it disappeared after years of civil war?"

It has been said before that not all those who wander are lost dear Elf. I should think you would remember that."

"How did he come to be here? Why…"

"I'll let him answer those questions for you when he is ready, until then eat and rest."

"Thank you, but I need to be on my way. I must return to Lothlorien and report what has happened to her army."

"They already know Feaestel. Believe me they know… Besides you can't go there at this time, the entire Northern border is being controlled by Gondor. We sit no further than twenty miles from an army camp. The only reason they don't dare come here is because they think the village is cursed."

"Why would they think that?"

"We told them it was, and so far it has worked like a charm."

She gave a final wink and climbed down the door.

Aswin began to stir as he wiped the sleep form his eyes."

"I smell food."

He pushed himself to the edge of the bed and began to eat the food Mayda had left.

"Don't you want any?"

"No I'm not hungry; you can have mine if you want."

I left Aswin with a large bite of food in his mouth and decide to take a walk. My leg was still throbbing but I decided it was worth a little pain to get a breath of air. I stepped down onto the ladder and found that it led into a small crowded kitchen. There was a large flour covered table, and several chairs. Some cracked egg shells and batter were all that remained of the fresh bread I smelled baking earlier. Past the kitchen I could see a cozy sitting area, separated by a waist high wooden divider that must have been used at one time to pin animals. This place was truly nothing more than a converted stable. The most obvious feature was the two large blue barn doors. One of the doors was partially opened so I took a step outside into the bright afternoon sun. My eyes scanned the impressive landscape. I saw many tall Mountains guarding the horizon all around the village, and I saw a large glass lake that mirrored the reflection of the sky on the earth. I took a deep breath as a cool breeze blew the smell of fresh hay past my nose. I walked a short way and found the same old oak tree I had hidden little Mayda under.

It's amazing how the little things of the past can shape the course of our future. Things had truly come full circle. Nothing was now left that could have spoken to our past presence there. The only thing under the oak now was Eldritch; casually sitting and smoking a long pipe.

"Is today not a beautiful day Master elf?"

"It is indeed a fine day sir."

"How is that leg of yours feeling?"

"Not too bad, but it would have felt better if it hadn't become acquainted with your knife last night."

He grinned.

"Sorry about that, but you were beginning to test my patience. You're a tough fellow to put down. You injured four of my friends the other night, and you did a fine hurt to my ribs yesterday. Hadwin was fixing on killing you after you cut up his arm. You're very fortunate to have Meril… errr… Rose as a friend, she explained everything to us."

That would have been the perfect time to apologize, but I still wasn't all that sorry.

"Thank you for helping her by he way; She is like a daughter to me and I don't know what I would have done if anything had happened to her."

"It was my honor."

I said it and I meant it.

"I still can't believe Meril changed her name. She can be so odd at times."

"I can believe that."

He smiled again and extended his hand. I reached for him and we clasped arms. He stood and a mischievous sort of look spread across his face.

"How are you with horses Feaestel? I hear Elves are good with horses."

"You hear correctly I imagine."

"Good!"

"I happen to be short a rider after you injured Hadwin in the woods. I was hoping you would be willing to do the right thing, and ride for him until he recovers. We need to transport some much need supplies to a nearby village. The army recently marched through and picked the town clean. They need food and medicine as soon as possible. Our goal is to travel unnoticed, so we will set out as soon as the sun goes down. You will find your horse tied up behind the barn. "

I nodded. I didn't have anything better to do at the moment, so why not?

Eldritch turned to leave, but then stopped himself. He looked back at me and said in a sincere tone,

"By the way, it is always a pleasure to meet one of the Eldar, especially one from the line and house of Elrond. It will be a great honor riding with you."

With that he stood and left, leaving me with a look of overall confusion on my face. How did he know that?! How did he know of my family? This man was creating so many questions I thought my mind would burst. Not knowing what else to do, I decided to go check on Aswin and inform Rose about what I had gotten myself into this time.

To be continued…


	9. A Starless Night

Another reminder that I do not own Middle Earth and I do not own several characters mentioned in this chapter including Beren, Luthien, Elrond, Elladan, Sauron and Thuringwethil. Everyone else however I'm pretty sure belongs to me.

****

Breath of Midnight  
Please read and let me know what you think.

****

A Starless Night

An ancient evil is now unleashed  
An ancient foe has been unmasked.  
Yet against love none can stand;  
It is the arrow that pierces every heart.  
  
We were nothing more than six faint figures silently silhouetted against the moonless night; riding through the impenetrable darkness of a seemingly starless sky. A dark veil was shrouding the world that night, protecting and hiding some dark mystery. Onward we rode despite the dark; the ground echoing the rhythm of our path. Each horse was laden with supplies and weapons that needed to be delivered to the ravaged village before the sun rose. Eldritch led the way as we rode through the treeless plain towards our destination. Aswin followed on my left and Rose on my right; neither of them would be left behind when I told them where Eldritch had asked me to go, and needless to say I found them both to be equally stubborn on the matter.

A slight breeze began to blow, and with it faint amounts of ash and ember danced across the plain.

We had arrived.

We rode on to what must have been the main road, but now it only appeared to be a makeshift cobblestone graveyard. The dead and injured were laid out on street, side by side, with eerie candles lighting their ghastly images. The fire danced across their anguished faces, giving just enough light for families to find their loved ones despite the strange darkness. We did not have a lot of time to take in this new scene. Upon our arrival we were instantly mobbed by dirty faces and hands; looking and reaching for anything we might have to ease their suffering.

My heart broke.

We struggled to make our way through the crowd, but were overwhelmed. Soon

A short stout man with red hair and a ruddy beard ran out from a dilapidated pub, and no doubt having seen our plight, quickly approached Eldritch's horse. Eldritch dismounted and managed to politely shake his hand despite the surrounding madness. They spoke for a moment as the crowd became increasingly restless. When they had finished their discourse the short man spoke to the mob in a surprisingly loud voice, and the crowd instantly calmed. He motioned for our group to follow him towards what remained of the center of town. There we were able to tie the horses and hand out the supplies in an organized fashion. Two rangers maintained order in the crowd while the rest of us dealt with the villagers on as much of an individual basis as possible. Taking care of everyone's needs as quickly as we could. Rose and a light haired ranger named Immin followed a villager to a tent set up for healing. Both were skilled in such arts and were desperately needed to relive the already overworked physician. We all worked hard and late into the night lending a helping hand where we could. Aswin seemed particularly affected by the people's urgent need. The situation of the village reminded him of the plight of his own, and no doubt the loss of his own family. When we had done all that we could do, we began to prepare the horses for the return ride. I was about to mount my horse when Eldritch and the short man approached me. Eldritch spoke in a hushed whisper.

"Feaestel, I would like to introduce you to Bertwald. He is a very well respected man here, and I think he might have a few things to say you might be interested in hearing."

The three of us then left the group and entered the dilapidated pub. The place was empty for the moment and definitely reeked of what was in my opinion very bad ale. There was nothing of mention about the place, only some overturned tables and a lot of broken glass on the floor. Bertwald stumbled about in the dark until he found a candle to light. We righted some chairs and sat down at a table in the middle of the empty room.

"Bertwald…now that we're somewhere private, please tell Feaestel and myself what happened."

The nervous Bertwald stewed a bit before leaving the table to find himself a pint. When he returned he took a long drink, wiped his mouth, and began.

"Well, as you know, this village brews the best ale this side of the Misty Mountains. That's why they call us Gold town…our beautiful golden ale. We are the only village to sell our store to the Golden Hall. My father and my father's father ran this place. We were and will always be known, and well renowned throughout the Mark!"

(The ale didn't seem that good to me, but who was I to judge?)

Eldritch looked as though he had heard this speech many times before, and he gently encouraged the man to get to the point.

"Those barbarians usually only storm through here to steal some meat and drink, but this time it was different. Oh yes, they took more than there fair share of ale, but they wanted more than just a chance to quench their thirst. They were looking for something…or… someone."

My heart jumped into my throat.

"…and they weren't looking alone neither. There was this woman with them. She was a thing to look at, but not something you would want to touch. She was as cold as death and twice as bitter. She spoke to me about some Elf fellow that escaped from one place or another. I told her I didn't know anything about any Elves, but she wouldn't listen. She ordered the men to tear this place apart until every blade of grass had been crushed. Her men interrogated every man, woman, and child in the village. When she left, she said would search every village, house by house, in the region if she had to… So you can imagine my concern when I saw your pointy eared friend riding into town tonight Eldritch."

Eldritch lit his pipe and nodded slowly before turning to me.

"Rose mentioned you had escaped from the Southern camp. Tell me, are you the one they are looking for?"

"I can't imagine who else it would be; but I have no idea who this woman is. Aswin was the only one sent out to find me, and as far as I know he's not looking anymore."

Eldritch then returned his attention to Bertwald.

"Do you have any Idea where the woman came from?"

"Yes, actually I do. One of our boys said he saw her in the Golden Hall once while delivering ale. She seemed to hold a strong confidence with the king and was hardly seen away from his side."

Eldritch's eyes grew wide as a terrible realization came upon him.

"Did she have black hair and strange haunting eyes?"

"Why yes…do you know her?!"

"Yes, and she has been a long festering poison in this land for many years now. She works at the very right hand of this new darkness. She was sent on the behalf of the King of Gondor to give council to the throne of Rohan. She is the reason we are overrun with the red army. She is a king slayer, and under her eye King Eoelwald was murdered and his depraved cousin Hereric set upon the throne. I am sure she is behind some dark villainy in Gondor as well, though what exactly I can not tell."

King Eoelwald was no doubt Rose's father and Hereric her wicked uncle. Eldritch must have come across this woman while tutoring Rose after the murder of her father and the madness of her mother. All these thoughts ran through my head as I tried to put the pieces together, but all was soon lost when Aswin entered the pub.

"We need to ride out now if we are to avoid the exposure of daylight. I just waned to tell you that your horses are ready to go as soon as you are."

It seemed that discovering this lady's origin and purpose would have to wait. Such things are better discussed in daylight anyhow.

We rode out into the dark again; leaving the burning embers of the town behind us.

I didn't know how it was possible, but the sky was not growing brighter with the coming dawn; instead it seemed to darken all the more with each passing moment. The air began to grow thin and cold as the night wore on, and the horses became restless; jolting back at unseen dangers. Soon they stopped moving all together in mid-step and would not move forward despite the kicks of their riders. After that the night grew very still. No sound from man or animal could be heard, except the sudden shrillness of a woman's scream. I immediately feared something had happened to Rose. I managed to calm my horse with soft words, and rode to the back of the group where Rose had fallen behind. I was relived to find that she was safe, and that she was not the source of the terrifying scream.

But if not her, then who?

Soon one of the rangers at the front of the line called back,

"It's a she-elf, and I think she's hurt!"

I left Rose and rode to the front where I saw what Immin was talking about. I saw a dark haired maid reaching out and crying for help. She had the looks of an elf, but not the feel; there was something not quite right about her eyes.

I slowly stepped down from my horse as she continued to moan in pain on the ground. I told the other men to stay on their horses, and not to come too close. Everything about this seemed wrong but I didn't know why. I asked the fragile looking creature if she needed help,

"Lle anta amin tu?"

She grew still and silent; but did not answer. Slowly she lifted her head, and I felt the full weight of those strange eyes fall upon me. Eyes I had seen only in my worst nightmares.

I drew my sword and shouted to the men,

"Ta naa neuma! It's a trap!"

It was then I felt it; a strange change in the air. The darkness surrounding us seemed to pull back as the night was filled with a sick green light. This light was not like the light of the sun nor the stars. Instead of giving life, it seemed to take it. The grass beneath us began to wither, and the horses began to foam at the mouth. The woman stood at the center of this plague with a calm smile.

"I am looking for Feaestel, son of Erubadhor, grandson of Elladan, of the house of Elrond. Tell me elf where I may find him, or die where you stand."

I remained still despite my beating heart, and pointed my sword toward her throat. I was afraid, but I couldn't let her know that. If given the opportunity an enemy will feed off your fear until they consume you.

"Then look no further daughter of darkness, for he stands before you. I am he that you seek. What is it that you desire?"

"You're still beating heart."

With that she let out a blood chilling shriek. She lifted her arms like wings and rose into the air. Her eyes turned red and her face became pale and sunken. Her fingers and teeth grew long and sharp until they formed into menacing iron weapons. Then with what seemed to be a great effort she summoned the darkness to her and clothed herself in it. Like a giant leather winged bat she flew above me, circling in for the kill. I raised my sword, stood my ground, and prayed for strength. She came down on me with a great weight; her iron teeth bared. I drove my sword into her side, but it had no effect. My sword was of no use other than to stand between myself and those teeth. I felt blind and deaf surrounded by so much darkness. I felt myself being drained of strength and will, I could feel myself weakening under her weight. I fell to my knees as it grew harder and harder to hold her back. Finally her iron teeth managed to find their way around my sword and snapped it in two. I called out,

"A Elbereth Gilthoniel o menel palan-diriel, le nallon si di'nguruthos! A tiro nin, Fanuils!"

As I spoke those words the darkness around me lifted and the creature shrieked in pain. She thrashed in the air like a wounded snake; wounded but far from done. The ranger Caelin rode to attack her, but soon found himself being attacked as well. Her wings fell down and her claws clasped hold of his steed. Caelin fell off his horse and was forced to watch the creature suck the very life blood out of the horse until nothing but an emaciated shell remained. When she had finished her meal she again took flight. Her powerful wings pushed the air with a great force as she flew toward me again; her wrath apparent.

I braced myself as she approached and held my broken sword in defiance, yet she did not strike. Then from behind me, singing through the air, came an arrow. The arrow was true to its course and struck the creature in the heart. Rose had taken aim, and had hit her mark. The creature wailed in agony as darkness oozed from the wound, and she diminished back into her more mortal form. Her now human hands clasped the arrow in her chest as she spoke.

"You may think you have won, but heed my words you have not seen the last of me. I shall not rest until I drink of your blood and hold your heart in my hand. Wherever you go, I will find you. Even unto the depths of thy dreams I shall torment thee foul son of Luthien!"

And before anyone could move to stop her she melted away into the shadows, and disappeared taking the darkness with her; revealing the first light of the rising sun.

The weight I had felt on my body and spirit lifted as well. I dropped to my knees on the grass still holding the broken remains of my sword. Aswin and Rose ran up behind me to see if I was hurt. I was tired but amazingly unharmed. Caelin seemed fine, but was in an awful state if shock over his horse. Rose gave him her horse and asked if she could ride with me the rest of the way home. I pulled her up behind me and set off. We moved fast, galloping all the way. We had lost the cover of darkness and had no desire to meet anything else on the road that day. We made good time as we trampled across the now sunlit plain, and I was glad to have Rose with me for the return trip. She had amazed me. There was clearly still more to this girl than met the eye. I had been underestimating and misjudging her since I met her, and I promised myself I would not make such a mistake again. When we arrived we tied the horses up behind the barn, and when we had finished a young boy came out to send us inside for breakfast. We followed our noses toward the food while the boy stayed behind to care for the animals.

Mayda stood outside those big blue doors and greeted us as we came in. Never has there been such a kind and welcoming sight. On the kitchen table she had waiting for us fresh biscuits, honey, eggs and milk. Mayda had us all take a seat around the table while she spoke.

"So, tell me how everything went. How are our friends holding out over there in Gold?"

Eldritch told her about the state of the village, and informed her that in a few weeks they would need to go back to make sure everything was coming along as smoothly as possible.

"But what took you so long getting back? I was in a panic when the sun came up without you here."

Everyone at the table turned and looked at me. I'm sure they thought I was the best one to try and explain what had happened that morning, but I still wasn't sure. I wanted to forget about it for at least a while. The morning was so beautiful that I didn't want to spoil it with tales from the dark night; but alas, they were still all looking at me.

I told Mayda about the dark lady on the road, and about the iron clawed beast. When my tale was complete she pulled out a chair, slowly took a seat, and a long drink of milk.

"I guess that explains the delay (Gulp of milk) Does anyone know who this Lady is?"

Eldritch spoke of what he knew, but his knowledge was still not enough to see the whole picture. I myself had spent the ride back trying to put the pieces together. I had my suspicions, but I didn't dare voice them aloud lest they be true. My blood again began to run cold at the mere thought. I had met this dark lady even before this morning. She must have been the source of my evil dreams of late; the dark shadow, the iron teeth and claws, it had to be her. She had been the tormentor of my sleep, but now she had found her way into my waking hours. The more thought I gave to the problem the clearer the answer grew in my mind, and without noticing I began to speak my thoughts aloud.

"Son of Luthien…before she left she called me a foul son of Luthien."

Rose gave me an odd questioning look."

"This is a story you would like Rose… My ancestor Luthien was the fairest of all our kind. She fell in love with the mortal Beren. Luthien's father did not approve of this love and gave Beren what seemed to be an impossible task; he sent Beren out to recover a jewel of immeasurable value that had been stolen from our kin by Morgoth himself. Beren set out on his quest but was captured. Luthien went out to find her love and overcame many obstacles to be reunited with him and reclaim the jewel. But In order to do so she disguised herself in a cloak of darkness, complete with iron teeth and claws. A cloak she stole from Thuringwethil; Vampire of Angband and servant of Sauron."

Eldritch grew wide eyed.

"Are you sure, that's impossible!"

"I'm fairly sure, and it's not impossible. No one really knows what happened to Thuringwethil after her run in with Luthien, all the stories and songs are very vague on the matter. She could have been alive and well all these years hiding in a hole somewhere for all we know. I'm telling you it's her. That is the only explanation that makes any sense.

Eldritch shook his head.

"But why is she looking for you now? A late revenge? That seems ridiculous. Not to mention that if Luthien stole her cloak, then where did she get a new one?"

"I agree a late revenge against an old foe is ridiculous. I would have to guess that she is merely working for her master and that it was he; whoever that may be; who gave her a new cloak."

Mayda grew pale.

"You said she was a servant of Sauron, does this mean that Sauron has returned?"

"I don't know what it means. It could mean anything. The world is filled with so much evil, new and ancient, that anything could be the source of the Dark cloud that now hangs over Rohan and Gondor. I do however truly believe that Sauron is no more, but I fear that it is a far darker and more cunning evil that we face this day than the world has faced in many an age."

After our talk we helped Mayda clean up and then headed off to sleep the rest of the day away. While the others rested I sat alone outside under the old oak tree lost in thought. There was so much going on here and I still desperately needed to know what I had to do with any of it.

To be continued…


	10. Smoke and Mirrors

**Breath of Midnight  
**_Please read and let me know what you think._

**Smoke and Mirrors**

I See blood.  
Taste tears.  
Breathe smoke.  
All is bathed in ash.  
I hold her seemingly lifeless body in my arms.  
It was my fault.  
Only hours before Rose had been her sweet self.  
But now everything was different.  
A dream from which I could not awake.  
A nightmare that started under the old oak tree.

While all the others lay asleep in their beds I remained unsettled and unable to rest. The horrible image of Thuringwethil's mighty claws and wicked eyes tormented my thoughts still, and I had an overwhelming sense of unease rising within me.

I was a firm believer that every problem could be solved if given enough time and thought; but the more I thought the further a solution seemed to be.

I remained under the old tree until the sun set, and the moon rose again in the night sky. I was completely unaware of the passing of time, and yet I still did not know what I was going to do about Thuringwethil. This mad creature was out for blood, and hot on my trail. How long would it be before she found me? What would happen if she did? Would my friends find themselves caught in the crossfire? So many questions and not a single answer. On one hand I wanted to stay in the village. I could easily imagine carving out a pleasant existence with Aswin and Rose in this place. On the other hand, I knew I needed to report back to Lorien. If Lorien still stood, I needed to stand with her. I needed to inform anyone who might be left about this dark lady who seemed to lead the red army.

I wanted to stay, but in my heart I knew my journey was just beginning, and that my road must take me back to the Golden Wood.

I knew the right road is never the easy road...

I felt certain now of what I had to do. With my mind settled I looked up and saw the stars for the first time that night. I let their light cleanse my spirit and I praised the Valar for their providence.

I was just beginning to feel very centered and controlled, when suddenly I felt an unexpected firm hand grasp my shoulder.

For a moment my heart froze.

My hand grasped by blade.

"Feaestel, are you alright? We were growing worried."

I turned to see that the hand belonged to Rose, so I breathed a sigh and I let myself relax. She was looking at me with a concern that faded into a gentle smile when she realized how she had just startled me.

"Did you enjoy your journey? I don't know where you were just now, but I'm certain you were not here with me."

"I'm neither here nor there, this is my whole problem."

Her smile slowly melted back into that all too familiar look of concern, but she didn't inquire any more.

"Come back inside and have a drink with us. Aswin is telling tall tales in an attempt to charm some of the young women from town; you really must be a witness to this fine comedy."

"I can't… I'm sorry, but I can't. Maybe some other time?"

I didn't want to go inside. I had decided to leave, and I needed to go before I changed my mind. Already I felt my heart breaking, but I also felt a strange urgency setting in, and nothing I did seemed to settle it.

"You can't what?"

"I have to leave…I… I can't stay here any longer. I want to, believe me. You have all been so kind to me, but I need to go back ... I need to leave this place."

Rose was beginning to look angry and distressed.

"But why now! Why tonight! You can't just march through the perimeter Gondor has set in the North, and have you forgotten about Thurigwin…er…Thuringwibble..or whatever her name was? You need to stay here where it is safe!"

Her voice grew louder as she became more impassioned. I spoke to her with a cool even tone while I gently held her arms, and tried to hold her attention.

"Can't you see that is exactly why I need to leave? If I stay here she will find me, and all of you along with me. If I leave then there is nothing to draw the evil here. She is out there right now hunting, and who knows how long we have until she strikes. As for the army in the North, I don't know how long it will be until they are able to finally break through to Lorien. I need to get there before that can happen, no matter what the cost. They need to know what I know. Time is not on my side Rose."

I could have been mistaken, but in that moment, I thought I saw tears in her eyes as I spoke.

"Do you understand me?"

"I don't want you to go, but I think understand."

What was she crying about? She was such a strange mystery to me.

"But first, please go inside and tell the others what your plans are. It's the least you can do, and perhaps they can still be of some aid."

"I'm sorry but I can't. I don't know why, and I can't explain, but I don't want them to become any more involved than they already are. If I leave now perhaps it can be as if I were never here at all."

She did not argue, but instead wrapped her arms around me and held me tight. I was surprised, but I welcomed the comfort it brought me. She then motioned for me to follow her.

She led me far behind the barn to a stable that held all the horses, and beasts belonging to the village. Everything was silent except for the coarse breathing of the sleeping animals, and the musical chirping of a lone cricket. Rose quietly entered the stables and opened a large stall to reveal, out from amidst the shadows, a beautiful white mare.

She lovingly patted the animal's nose as she spoke.

"Her name is River. She if one of the Mearas, as I'm sure you can tell, and a more noble horse you shall never find. She is my gift to you friend. May she bare you hence only to bring you back once more."

She coaxed the animal out of the stall towards me. The horse whinnied and nuzzled her nose against my face.

"She has never been saddled, nor has she ever allowed a bridle or a bit near her. Elderich took her here to keep her safe after the murder of my father, and thus far I have been the only one she has allowed to ride her; but I think she will make an exception for you."

I was overwhelmed by the generosity of her gift. Such a horse was truly worthy of kings. Only the Lord of the Mark and his heirs had ever been permitted to mount one of the Mearas, with only one exception, Mithandir and the mighty Shadowfax.

Rose then left for a short while, but soon returned caring with her a small bag of supplies, and a long sword. I gratefully took them from her, but stopped short when she offered to return my bow and the remaining arrows.

"No, let them be my gift to you. I believe with you they will be put to far better aims than in my care."

And so with one last embrace I left.

With Rivers grace, I was allowed to climb onto her bare back and ride off into the night.

The air was cold against my face as I rode River across the green fields towards the mountains. I had become energized; my purpose renewed. I would soon see Lorien again. A sight I had feared would be forever lost to me. As I rode, the tiny image of Rose waiving farewell grew smaller and hazier in the dust. As much as I wanted to see Lorien again, I also hoped I would one day see her again; perhaps in happier times.

But for the moment I was free. Nothing but the wind in my hair and the road before me.

And soon nothing but the horror of distant screams.

River whinnied and raised herself up on her hind legs. I calmed her down, but her eyes remained wide with fear. The screams were coming from up the road behind us.

They were coming from the village.

I couldn't believe what I was hearing, but that fact made it none the less true.

I turned River around and made my way back as fast as I could.

This was my fault, I had waited too long to leave.

As I approached, all I could see was the glow of red flames. The smoke was moving in my direction blocking my vision and assaulting my senses. I may not have been able to see, but I could sill hear the frightened voices echoing through the night.

I had taken too long to decide, I had lingered when I should have moved on.

I had put them all in this danger.

Everywhere solders ran up and down the narrow streets searching and setting fire to every building they came across. I rode as quickly as I could toward the barn, where I last knew my friends to be, and did my best to remain unnoticed in the chaos. I arrived unseen, but only to find that the building was already aflame. The thatch roof had caught fire, and was slowly caving in on itself. River was beginning to spook, so I jumped off her back and used a cloth to cover the startled horse's eyes. I then ran for the door with sword raised, and began to hack my way through; all the while yelling in the hopes that someone was still alive. Yet no sign of life was anywhere to be found. It seemed even the solders were pulling out; their purpose at least for now complete.

I continued shouting;

"Amin tulien Melloneamin, I am coming, Amin tulien!!!"

From within the building several weak voices replied;

"We are in here, Feaestel!!!"

Those few words were the sweetest I had ever heard. They were still alive!!! Perhaps not all was lost!!! They must have had some warning, no matter how short, and had somehow managed to hide themselves before the solders arrived.

With all my strengthen I hacked away at the locked barn door until I found myself finally sheathing my sword, and forcing the splintered door apart with my shoulder. I rammed the door three times until it finally gave way. When I pushed through, I stumbled into the fiery furnace that was now the barn. Long gone was the friendly floury tables and smiley faces; all but the memory had been utterly consumed. I continued in through the kitchen but saw no sign of anyone. As I took one more step into the room, a section of ceiling over my head collapsed. I dove under the table to escape the rubble, but found myself trapped there seconds later.

(Over all, I would have to say this rescue wasn't going quite the way I had planned it, or hadn't planed it, as the case may be.)

I again used my sword to hack through the ruble. I crawled on my stomach to keep below the smoke in hopes of continuing my search, but still I saw no sign of my friends.

"Rose…Aswin…Eldritch…anyone?"

Then, out from the haze of smoke, two figures made their way into view.

"We are here Feaestel, we are here!!!"

My friends!!!….No, something was not right.

"We are here, but where are you? Come and save us Feaestel! Please come to us!"

There was something unnatural about their movements, and yet familiar about their faces.

They looked like two of Elderich's rangers, yet their voices were not their own, and their eyes and skin had gone milky white.

"Help us Feaestel, we thirst, come and give us a drink."

This was no doubt the evil of Thuringwethil.

I wrapped my sweaty hands around my sword while I silently I moved into a safe position and shouted;

"I have no quarrel with you friends, if you pursue this course the only thing you shall drink this night is your own blood."

My words went unheeded; as if no remnant of the brave rangers remained within them. They drew their swords in attack, while I drew my sword in defense. When all was said and done, I pulled my sword from their bodies, as one after the other they fell.

I was surprised to find that the blade somehow remained clean, and unsoiled despite the battle. These men were dead even before they meet my sword, and now no blood flowed from them at all. I had never heard of any evil that could drain men of mortal life, and then fill them with another.

These two men had been taken by Thuringwethil's darkness, and then wholly consumed.

One danger was now gone, but others still remained. The heat was becoming overwhelming, and there was no escape in sight. I lowered myself back down to the floor to try and see my way under the smoke, but the fire had grown to a point where even there visibility was limited. With my sword in my left hand I felt around the floor for a way out. Finally my right hand came across something solid and unburned. It was the ladder that lead up into the attic. I grabbed hold and began to climb my way up. I forced the door open and emerged into yet another flaming inferno. What was once a dimly lit windowless room was now alight in flame; the roof had burned away revealing the whole of the night sky. The fire was feeding on the last of the walls and begging to work on the floor. Soon the fire would weaken all the supports. I knew the floor would soon give way, so in order to evenly distribute my weight, I carefully crawled across it. When I made my way to the edge of the building I slowly stood back up. I could see I had a clear path to the ground below, and I knew it was my best chance for escape.

I was about to jump when I heard a moan in the room behind me. I looked back through the flame and smoke. All I saw was the shadow of someone outstretched on the floor, and that lone image filled me with hope. The first thing to catch my eye through the smoke was the outline of red hair; it was without doubt Rose. Suddenly all fear and caution left me as I ran to her aid.

I bent down and gathered her body up of the floor. Her eyes were closed, and she seemed cold and limp. The color was gone from her face and she felt clammy to the touch, yet life had not yet completely left her. Breath was still within her lips. As I brushed her singed hair away from her face, her eyes opened suddenly, and a smile stretched across her pale expression. Normally this would not have been cause for concern, but those eyes and that smile were not her own, and when she spoke it was her voice I heard, but not her spirit.

"Gurth goth lle Nwalmaer"

Red eyes shone as she reached her hands up and grabbed hold of my neck. I quickly grasped her vice like hands and freed myself from their harsh grip. When I released her she fell back down to the floor, but soon with a renewed hatred came to her feet and lunged forward; strange eyes fixed solely on me. Her garments were torn and hanging about her in an awkward fashion. Small sections of it even began to catch fire as she moved through the flames unaware and uncaring.

I feared that Rose had met the same fate as the two rangers, and that from this unnatural death there would be no return.

I feared that Rose had been wholly consumed by the darkness.

I drew my sword and readied it to defend myself. When she came at me again I hesitated, and sheathed by blade. She looked and felt just like Rose, and I didn't know if I could slay her, even in defense.

Again she grabbed at my throat and tried to push me to the ground. At this point I drew my sword out of pure instinct and cut straight into her side, but again I hesitated, and I was unable to follow through with a complete blow. She fell backward onto her knees and let out a mortally painful cry of fear. At that moment I looked down at her side, and saw an ever growing red stain permeating her gown.

She was bleeding.

She was not like the others after all.

She sat there on the ground looking up at me with heart wrenching tears in her eyes as she tried to speak.

"Feaestel, I'm so sorry…please, help me…please."

I dropped my sword in shock.

"What have I done?"

Then suddenly, as if a covering had been lifted from my eyes, I saw the image of Thuringwethil smiling at us; dimly veiled in a shroud of darkness and smoke.

"Leave her!!"

I commanded.

"Leave her!! You have no dominion here. Leave!!"

She laughed as her dark presence left the room. Rose's body became still, and the tormented expression left her face.

All I could do now was hold her as the blood continued to flow.

_To be continued…_

_Sorry it's been such a long time since my last update. School and theater take up a lot of time…and so does writing…and they often conflict. Thanks for hanging in there._


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